


Can King make Ram Blush?

by Leviisthesexiestheichou



Series: My Engineer: RamKing [1]
Category: My Engineer (TV)
Genre: Adorable, Bets, Blushing, Cute, Flirting, Fluff, Fluffy, Gay, Innocent, Love, M/M, MxM - Freeform, Pick Up Lines, Romance, Young Love, cheek kiss, mostly - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-08
Updated: 2020-09-08
Packaged: 2021-03-06 22:40:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 9,641
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26286601
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Leviisthesexiestheichou/pseuds/Leviisthesexiestheichou
Summary: Ram and King are in the flirting stage of their relationship, but no one has ever seen Ram blush before.  One day, everyone points out that King is always the one blushing around Ram, but it isn't the other way around.  King places a bet that he can get his crush to blush.  But getting the cool faced boy to blush is easier said than done.This takes place after episode 14.
Relationships: Boss/Mek (My Engineer), Duen Krisada Rattananumchok/Bon Sirikarnkul, King/Ram (My Engineer)
Series: My Engineer: RamKing [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1930900
Comments: 25
Kudos: 144





	1. Let's put some Money on This

It had been three months since that fateful night in the tent. It was King's best dumb decision he'd ever made. Initially, he had been kicking himself for kissing Ram and adding more pressure to his tumbling life. Relationships were the last thing the silent boy needed after dealing with an abundance of family issues. A drunken confession was also not how King had envisioned admitting his growing fondness for the junior. But that was how it happened. 

When King returned from his grandmother’s house, drama had ensued. King was running away from his fear of rejection faster than a man being chased by a cheetah. Ram was being Ram. Their friends hated to see the two idiots suffer. Thankfully, both were able to work out their hesitations and decide to begin their flirting stage. 

Now that the decision to take their relationship to the next level had been made, there was a problem. It was a giant conundrum. Neither knew how to move forward. For three solid months, they had been stuck in the flirting stage. King was too sober to ask, and Ram was too shy to speak up himself. Their relationship had been in a stalemate ever since Ram had accepted King’s proposal of flirtation. 

Presently, King was enjoying his lunch at the canteen with his rowdy group of friends. Mek was coveting a soda that Boss was begging him for, reaching up to grab it and continually calling him ‘husband’, and Tee was rolling his eyes at the two. Silently, King watched the events unfold. 

Slowly, three familiar faces appeared at the end of the table. 

“Are you sure you can’t eat lunch with me?” Bohn asked his boyfriend with the cutest puppy eyes he could muster. Just as Duen was about to change his mind, Ram grabbed his arm and shook his head sternly at him.

Ram. There was the man of the hour. King tried not to blush from just looking at him. Unknowingly, he was admiring his features with a twinkle in his eye. His nose sloped down so nicely and peaked over a cute pair of small, round lips. Two pools of chocolate swirls fixated on his face with a pair of neat eyebrows knitted above them.

Suddenly, King could feel his face start to grow hot. The world around him flashed before his eyes, and soon enough, Ram and Duen were departing from the group, leaving a grumbling Bohn behind.

“You’re so whipped,” Boss said as he happily opened the can his boyfriend kindly gifted him. 

“I am not! I just miss him sometimes,” Bohn defended. He plumped next to King and begrudgingly started to eat his chicken and basil.

“I’m not talking about you. I’m talking about King,” Boss said, pointing out the boy that had been staring at the shrinking figures ahead. He hated seeing Ram leave, but he loved watching him go. The attention from the table on him got him out of his thoughts and to the annoying friends.

“What?” King asked, having not heard their comments whatsoever.

“See, he’s totally whipped. His face is the color of a chom-poo,” Boss smirked. Tee felt King’s forehead. He didn’t have a fever. Perhaps, he was lovesick. 

“I-I am not,” King denied. There was no way he would admit that he was more whipped for that boy that cream on a cherry pie. Though his friends were aware of his less than obvious crush, he hated them bringing it to light. He wasn’t as shameless as Mek and Boss or Bohn and Duen. 

“For once, Boss, I think you’re right. Our King is in love,” Bohn said, reciprocating the smirk from his friend across the table. Mek shook his head and smiled. 

“I’m not in love with him. If anything, he’s in love with me!” King said confidently, though he felt anything but that. Considering he was the first to confess, and it took months for Ram to speak a full sentence to him, it was clear who was more attracted to whom. At least it felt that way to King. 

“Oh, please. He never blushes the way you do,” Tee interjected. 

Bohn pinched his cheek teasingly and chuckled at the flustered boy. “Just admit it, you’re smitten,” he cooed.

“I can totally make him blush. I’ve done it before!” King said. That was a lie. That was a bold faced lie. Ram had never blushed because of King, not even when they shared a kiss. Sure, he could be taken aback, but his face never told what he was thinking. Only his eyes gave away any clue into the mysteries of the cold face’s mind.

“Ha! Liar liar pants on fire!” Boss shouted and pointed accusingly at King. Mek lowered his arm and shook his head. 

“It’s true! I can prove it to you,” King said boldly. His eyes averted from his accuser and glued to his curry.

“Let’s make this interesting,” Bohn suggested with a devious look on his face. They all looked up at him expectantly. “Let’s put some money on this.”

“Oh, I like that idea,” Boss agreed. He leaned across the table and challenged King. “I bet 300 baht that you can’t make him blush within one week.”

“I second that,” Bohn said.

“I’ll make a bet too,” Tee added.

“I’ll go in with Boss,” Mek said quietly. It was the first time he had spoken the entire meal. The shade of it all. 

“Fine! I’ll accept your bet. You all will be paying up by this time next week,” King grinned. Butterflies filled his stomach. He’d have to actually flirt with Ram.

“But if you lose, you have to pay us 300 baht each and declare your undying love for him in front of everyone,” Boss said cruelly. How did Mek fall for such a merciless guy?

“And you have to give us proof that you made him blush. You have to provide us with a picture,” Tee said. He seemed to be the brains of the operation. Why were his friends like this?

“You’re on!”


	2. Attempt 1: Sucker for You

King had no idea what he was doing. He had never flirted with anyone before. Even though him and Ram had labeled themselves as ‘flirting’, they didn’t change how they behaved towards each other. The most King would do in an attempt to flirt was give him things. Ram wasn’t exactly the most forward person either, making this task that much more difficult.

What was a person with zero life experience in dating to do? In this day and age, the place with the most abundant information was Google. So, that’s exactly what King did. He searched for flirting tips and pick up lines all night. Meticulously, he outlined a plan for how he’d flirt with his victim. Every day held a new pick up line with different ideas and everything. King was confident one of these lines would work. If Ram used any of them on him, he’d be blushing all month!

Badly, he wanted to ask his friends for advice. They all refused, which made sense. They weren’t going to help someone they had a bet with. His only resources would be the memories of his friends flirting from the past, television, and the internet. That should be more than enough to get him to make his little crush turn a few shades bright.

Eagerly, he wandered through campus and spotted Ram sitting patiently on a bench from afar. There were a few scattered trees wearing bushes and crowning the bench. The bench was right against the pathway, facing the yoga class taking place in the center of the green space ways away. His eyes were retracing his surroundings and trying to find focus. Nothing around him seemed to interest him as he never looked at one place for more than a few moments.

With an amused face, King raced towards him and seated himself closely to him. He did his best to ignore the heat rising to his cheeks when feeling their knees bumping against each other.

“Funny seeing you here,” King said in a joking tone. His hands clenched at the bottom of the seat anxiously. It was different planning versus executing. “Easier said than done,” was the trademarked phrase. Seeing Ram in person didn’t give him the same feeling that practicing in the mirror gave him. His palms started to feel sweaty, and his heart was practically jumping out of his chest.

“We planned to be here,” Ram said bluntly while looking over at the nervous boy. His face was his usual, stone cold. Sometimes, you could tell what he was thinking with his eyes, but it wasn’t often that they changed.

“And you showed up. Isn’t that funny?” King asked with a timid laugh. This totally wasn’t awkward at all.

Ram didn’t look impressed. Instead, he blankly stared at him and shrugged his shoulders as if to indicate that he was indifferent about the situation.

Feeling the suspense go on for too long, King sunk one of his hands in his pocket and started fumbling around for the two objects he prepared. Two suckers, one blue and one red, were revealed from his jeans and raised in front of them. King handed one to Ram. Hesitantly, he accepted the red one and began sucking and twirling on the object. King licked the blue one shyly.

Out of all the pick up lines he saw, King favored this one the most. It was cheeky and simple. The difficult part was deciding on which flavors to get. They had to be pigmented enough that the pick up line would work and not be a disgusting taste. 

“Do you like strawberry flavor? I wasn’t sure whether to get strawberry or lemonade, but I felt that strawberry was the stronger choice. I’m not a big fan of blueberry flavors, but this one is alright,” King rambled, trying to fill the air with anything but silence.

“I like it,” Ram affirmed. King grinned brightly. His assurance gave King a mini boost of confidence.

“Hey. What color is my tongue?” He asked as he stuck out his blue stained tongue.

Ram looked closely at him.

“Blue,” he said nonchalantly.

“Let me check the color of your tongue,” King nudged. Ram cocked an eyebrow at him but did as he was told, poking out his reddened taste buds.

“Oh. That’s definitely red,” King said. He felt that scary feeling again now that the main part of the pick up line was getting closer. How was Bohn so bold? After their bet, he needed to ask him for tips in the confidence department.

He was proud of himself for putting forth the bravery in flirting with Ram in the first place. The cold face wasn't the easiest egg to crack, and it could be hard to decipher what he did and didn't like. 

Ram nodded his head.

“Want to make our tongues purple?” King asked with a soft smirk grazing upon his lips. Ram locked eyes with him and suddenly plucked the lollipop from between King’s fingers. With their eyes still connected, he sucked on King’s lollipop.

That wasn’t supposed to happen. Ram was supposed to kiss him. Why didn't Ram want to kiss him? The lollipops were without warning. Maybe he had bad breath or something. This wasn’t a bad alternative. The way his lips puckered over the round object made King feel tingly inside. But he wasn’t supposed to blush, Ram was!

“Is it purple?” Ram asked innocently as he stuck his tongue out. He acted like he had no idea what he was doing. King glanced down at the muscle protruding from his mouth.

“Yeah. It’s purple,” King said, not knowing whether to feel defeated or titillated.

It was an indirect kiss. But it was better than nothing.


	3. Attempt 2: Read the Room

King had been thinking of pick up lines that Ram couldn’t avoid. He didn’t want to be subtle but wanted clever wordplay as well. Earlier that day, he studied Bohn and Duen’s dynamics to see how he could replicate their relationship. Bohn was always hitting on Duen, and Duen was flustered and pushed away.

“My wife looked so cute in that apron yesterday,” Bohn had said as he shamelessly kissed the side of Duen’s cheek. It wasn’t necessary to do this in front of everyone at the bar, but he didn’t care.

Duen rolled his eyes and jerked his head away. “Shut up,” he pouted. A second later, a shy smile formed on his face, revealing his secret love of affection. Biting the corner of his mouth, he latched their hands together and gave Bohn’s a light squeeze. They were so gross.

Somehow, their relationship still worked. There was a distinct difference between them and him and Ram. Though Duen pushed away, he also pushed back. He’d fall for Bohn's little tricks and happily play along. Ram seemed disinterested in games of any sort.

The lollipop idea was a bust. King concluded that his lack of warning was the cause of his failure, so he decided that he needed to take Ram into consideration more. Not every pick up line was going to work on him. They needed to be chosen based on the person. 

Walking around campus in a funk, King saw Ram sitting at a table doing his homework. The edge of his pencil was irritably tapping at the top, like he was trying to think of what to do. With a grin, King strode towards him. He plopped beside him and checked out what he was working on. It was more math. Even if he hadn’t seen what it was, King could’ve guessed that. That seemed to be the subject Ram struggled the most in.

“Having trouble in math again?” King asked. Ram nodded softly and handed him his pencil, already knowing that King would be more than happy to help.

King took the pencil and jotted down a few tricks he’d figured out to memorize the formulas more easily. Thoroughly, he wrote out step-by-step processes for each equation and checked every once in a while to ensure Ram understood. After each explanation, he’d watch Ram try to solve the problem on his own and corrected him when needed. His frustrated face relaxed the more they were working.

King loved the little moments they spent like this together. They were in their most comfortable state. No one was overthinking or avoiding those ambiguous gestures that made them question their status. Did touching pinkies mean that they wanted to hold each other's hands? Did prolonged eye contact mean that they wanted to kiss each other? He didn't have to think about that when he was tutoring Ram. They were too busy to think about numbers to worry about romance. 

The setting sun had indicated that they’d been working long enough. King handed the pencil back to Ram and watched him pack away his things. They both knew that they would eat dinner after this. It had become their habit for Ram to treat King for a meal in gratitude of his charity.

Now was the time. King had been patiently waiting to use his winning pick up line of the day on him. He decided not to use it earlier in case it distracted them. Slowly, they rose from the table and reached their arms to the sky, letting the tension in their muscles ease.

“Ai’Ning, I may not have a library card, but can I check you out?” King asked with a smirk, glancing up and down at him.

Ram was wearing his uniform, as expected, but it looked off today...in a good way. That could’ve been because Ram had been working out more, which resulted in his shirts becoming tighter fitting.

Ram frowned and grabbed a tight hold of King’s wrist. Confused, King yelped as he was dragged across the courtyard.

“Ai’Ning! Ai’Ning! Where are you taking me?” He shouted frantically. It was no use. His silent boy would remain speechless. As they walked through campus, he noticed a familiar path that he couldn’t place his finger on. They passed a few giant buildings and turned towards a narrow pathway. It wasn’t until they arrived at the building when he realized where they were going.

“The library?” King asked. Once again, Ram didn’t answer and guided him inside. King couldn’t help but think that Ram was taking his joke too far. Maybe, Ram wanted King to pretend to check him out like an actual library book!

“Why are we here?” King demanded as they waited in line at the front desk.

He didn't mind being in the library as much as he wanted to complain. The chilly air felt like heaven against his scolding skin. Though he was used to his country's hot temper, he preferred to feel cold enough to want to wrap up in a blanket and feel all cozy. What did weather with snow feel like? 

“To get you your library card,” Ram answered. King sighed and face-palmed.

This was the real reason for their venture? King couldn’t decide whether Ram was duller than a used pencil or was trying to avoid his flirting tactics. He took note of this and reminded himself to use a more obvious pick up line next time.

“I have a library card. That wasn’t meant to be taken literally,” King said.

Ram looked slightly disappointed, almost like he felt stupid. He patted his shoulder comfortingly.

“It’s okay. You can make it up to me by treating me to a nice meal, ‘kay?” King grinned. Ram softly smiled and took his wrist again.


	4. Attempt 3: Bedroom Talk

“Any luck yet?” 

That had been the question King was dreading to hear. Though he had only tried twice at this point, he already felt like a bit of a failure. It made him question how much they actually liked each other if Ram couldn’t even muster a little rose on his cheeks. So, when Boss asked this question on their walk to class, King couldn’t help but roll his eyes.

“Luck with what?” King asked. It was easier to play dumb than swallow his pride and admit he couldn’t get his almost boyfriend to blush like a schoolgirl.

“The bet. Do you have a photo of your junior turning pink yet?” a smirk grazed his friend’s face. He knew the answer to that question. That jerk just wanted King to admit it.

“Oh, that? I forgot we had that bet. Thanks for reminding me. I’ll get a photo of him today,” King said casually. Wisps of his hair blew into his face from the gust of winds outside. Annoyed, he spit his hair out of his mouth.

“What a convenient excuse you have, but you forget I’m your friend, King. You don’t forget anything. Heck, just the other day you drunkenly recounted every time Ram spoke to you,” Boss said, clearly unconvinced of his white lie. Well, it wasn’t really a white lie. It was a blatant lie. 

King just looked away from him and turned left to drag the door of the building. His silence told Boss he’d been right.

It was late at night, and Ram had been surprisingly responsive to King’s messages. He’d been better at texting back after they decided to start flirting with each other. King appreciated the effort he put into their relationship, even if it was something as small as a text message.

Ram was one dry texter. Seldom did he put effort into continuing the conversation. King was the one to ask all the questions and give thoughtful responses. Occasionally, he’d message him a photo of himself or something he admired. Ram was just as short in his texts as he was his speech. Still, one response was better than no response.

Just finishing up his last raid in Minecraft for the night, King checked his phone and saw that he hadn’t messaged Ram in over an hour. Building a little world in survival mode can really be distracting. He settled his console aside and crashed on his couch, raising his phone close to his face.

All day, King realized he was given no opportunity to flirt with Ram. School had kept him plenty busy with an assortment of tests and group assignments coming up. When King saw Ram on campus, instead of running up to annoy him, he had to keep walking. He hated the times school became the most hectic. 

King thought of how he could potentially make Ram blush. If he were successful, which was becoming more doubtful, he’d have to capture his face. Without thinking, he began FaceTimin him. To his surprise, Ram answered his call.

“Ai’Ning...what’re you doing?” King asked gently. 

His screen opened to a view of Ram sitting against a white wall, wearing a black tank top and allowing his bangs to sweep across his forehead. His rugged demeanor made him look charming in his own way. King wished he wore his hair like that more often. 

Ram lowered his camera to show a green bowl of noodles with a fork stuck inside.

“In bed eating ramen,” he answered in a tired voice. Concerned, King checked the time. Crud! He didn’t realize he had called him at midnight. They still had school the next day too. King decided he’d make this conversation brief.

“What would you do if I was in bed next to you?” King asked in a cheeky voice and with a cute smile.

He knew what he’d do if Ram was in his bed. Besides being happy with his presence, he’d grab hold and snuggle him until he fell asleep. After Ram moved out, he felt lonelier and missed their late-night cuddles.

“Eat my ramen,” Ram focused the camera back on his face.

King’s smile fell. “What if the ramen wasn’t there?”

“Then I’d go get some,” Ram said, not understanding the point of this conversation.

King huffed. Why was he being so difficult? Ram didn’t want to think about them holding each other? In the past, he had been the one to initiate it. Now, it felt like Ram didn’t care what they did.

“What flavor is it?” King asked in a subtly saddened tone, not wanting to alarm the boy in his phone. 

“Chicken,”

Disinterested and realizing he wasn’t going to get anywhere tonight, King sat up and stretched out. “I’m going to hit the hay. Goodnight,” 

Ram hung up on him. He didn’t even wish him goodnight back!

With a huff, exited out of their messages and went to check his Facebook. He glared at the blank face that popped through his feed. King couldn’t understand why he was being so cruel. If Ram was shy about flirting, surely he would blush. Was King being too cheesy? That was part of the charm of trying to woo someone. 

He considered the kind of person Ram was. Shy, selectively mute, moral, and honest were all qualities he possessed. The first word was the important one. Shy. Ram’s avoidance of flirtations could be due to his shy nature. King would have to do something to make Ram more comfortable with him.


	5. Attempt Four: King's Flower

Friday came rolling around the corner, and King hadn’t been feeling as optimistic that he’d get Ram to blush. Ram had earned a new nickname for himself: white face. There was not a dash of pigment to be seen on his face, unless the flush from the beating sun counted. King had a better chance of pantsing him to get him to blush than actual conversation. Even so, he didn’t believe that would work either. Plus, he didn’t want to embarrass him in a negative way. Doing something inappropriately without that person’s consent was not okay.

Stumped, he approached one of his plants hanging from the ceiling and draping in the center of the room. His fingertips brushed over its leaves and tickled the smooth top. His plants felt more responsive than Ram these days.

“What do you think I should do, Kwang?” he asked the dangling friend.

Kwang seemed to be the wisest of all his plants. She was the fullest and oldest one and went through many of his troubled times with him. In the past, she had given him great advice. There was only one time when her suggestion backfired on him, and that was partly because he hadn’t taken her full advice..

An idea planted in his head, no pun intended. It was a cute and simple pick up line, but he was sure it would work.

“You’re a genius! What would I do without you?” King raised to kiss her hand gratefully and let it slowly descend back to its comfortable place.

It had been a long time since Ram and King wandered around looking at plants. King brought Ram over to his favorite plant area at the school. It was secluded from other areas with an enclosed circle of trees privating the center. Bushes and bushes of different colored flowers beautifully scattered amongst the verdant. Not many knew about this location due to the tight barricade the trees provided. Most thought that there was nothing but more trees behind the brown giants, but they were sorely mistaken. King only knew of it after he stumbled upon it from being chased by a stray dog.

For some reason, King had felt this need to share his cherished aspects of life with Ram. It was probably because he had the largest crush he never knew he had for the longest time. Every time he showed something new to him, Ram's reaction surprised him. He opened his perspective in a fun way that King hadn't considered. And his reaction to everything was always adorable. It made him love those things that much more.

Ram knelt down and reached out to grab hold of a frangipani flower, petting the soft pink area of its coloring. Curious, King crouched beside him and shared his admiration.

“I think the pink petals really suit them. Usually, I like white flowers. But there’s something about the tone that I love in this color too,” King said while stroking the petals of one of the flowers next to his.

“I like blue,” Ram said.

King said that to himself at least ten times. He’d have to find Ram a blue flower to give to him. It would look cute next to his venus flytraps. A small chuckle escaped past his lips. The thought of him getting excited over giving flowers to his crush reminded him of Bohn and Duen. If only they could mimic the other parts of their relationship, like the actual dating aspect!

“Blue is a very rare color to find in nature. Blue flowers are pretty too,” King agreed.

The mention of something pretty reminded him of when he took Ram to his secret hideout. He had placed a purple flower in Ram’s hair. It was one of the prettiest things he’d ever envisioned. Such a simple gesture caused such a large uproar in this humble man’s heart. And why wouldn't it? The most gorgeous guy he had ever seen was sitting in his childhood hideout, surrounded by his favorite plants and decorated with one of his favorite colors. King wondered what he did in to become so lucky.

Hesitantly, he plucked the flower he was caressing from the bush and cutely plopped it on top of the black mass of hair adjacent to him.

“Hey, Ai’Ning. Are you a flower because I dig you,” King giggled.

So, it was a little corny. But Kwang had assured him that it would work.

“No. I’m a human,” Ram said bluntly, not bothering to spare a glance in his direction.

King was taken aback by that. Ram never wanted to flirt back with him. What was going through his mind? A wave of melancholy washed over him as he started to think that Ram potentially wasn’t interested in him. What if after their three months of flirting, Ram realized he wasn’t interested? Disheartened, he stared at the flowers. He certainly didn't act human.

"You sure you aren't part dog?" King teased. He was desperate for some kind of fun banter. Ram was a more serious person, but he knew how to have a good laugh. Right?

"Woof," Ram murmured as he reached up to remove the flower from his hair.

King poked his shoulder and chuckled at his sarcasm. That was the cutest sound he ever emitted!

"Such a good puppy," he ruffled his hair and watched it spike in different directions. Ram pushed his hand away and smoothed the top of his hair.

One step forward and two steps back.


	6. Attempt 5: 100% Fail

“And if the sun's upset and the sky goes cold  
Then if the clouds get heavy and start to fall  
I really need somebody to call my own  
I wanna be somebody to someone  
Someone to you  
Someone to you  
Someone to you  
Someone to you”

(Someone to You by Banners)

There were only two days to go, and King hadn’t made any progress. Ram hadn’t done as much as cracked a smile at his obnoxious humor, let alone blush. Instead, he received the same stone expression that he usually was given.

Deep in thought, King blasted Banners on the bus while longingly staring out at the window covered in rain drops. The day had much matched his angst. Quietly, he tried to have a stern talking-to with his heart about his predicament with Ram. The lyrics blasting from his earbuds said everything he was feeling. He just wanted to be someone to Ram. But did Ram want to be someone to him?

There hadn’t been one person that King had tried so desperately to get his attention. Before, he had fooled around with others, but they never held his interest. It wasn’t that they were easy, though some of them were, but more so the fact that after learning about them, he discovered that they were all so bland. No one compared to Ram. With each new level that he revealed, King was more captivated by him. Ram was anything but ordinary.

King wanted to keep such a special person in his life. Badly, he wanted to cherish him and remind him every day of why he was so important. They were two weirdos matched perfectly for each other. King liked plants, silent and mysterious, much like Ram. And Ram liked dogs, friendly and loyal, much like King. Weren’t they supposed to be together?

Mek and Boss were friends for years until they became a couple. But they weren't aware of each other's feelings for years either. Ram and King knew how they felt about each other. At least, that's what King liked to believe. Ram would've told him that he wanted to discontinue. Unless, he didn't want to upset a senior and was waiting for King to take the hint. An unpleasant churn in his stomach twisted at that suspicion. 

Feeling a little defeated, King wanted to give it one last try. He didn’t want to make this attempt, but it was his last resort. He had been out of all other options. Props, innocence, kindness, and flattery all didn’t work. Ram wasn’t phased in the slightest.

Their ‘date’ had just finished up. King didn’t know if taking Ram’s dogs on a walk was considered a date, especially with their lack of flirting, but he’d like to think it was. Since knowing Ram more, King had become acquainted with the furried companions.

It had gone rather well. King made a few jokes that got Ram to smile, and he even made progress with the four-legged creatures that wanted his attention. One day, he'd be brave enough to pet them. Ram almost let King hold his hand too. King figured that Ram wanted a stable grip on the dogs' leashes after he pushed his hand away. 

They approached the door to King’s condo. The dogs whined and stood patiently in front of King, expecting a visit like old times. With a chuckle, he stuck his tongue out at them. Even if Ram did come in, they would be secluded to a tiny room and away from them. 

With a sly smile, King leaned against his door and licked his lips. He would've tried for a kiss if he didn't have other plans. “Just to let you know, I’m having a sale in my bedroom,” he mentioned casually. Ram cocked his head to the side curiously. “All my clothes are one hundred percent off.”

Ram stared at him for a good minute. His demeanor didn’t change. There was nothing that suggested he liked or disliked King’s advances. The boy was statued in place, looking at the plant lover. Finally, he spoke.

The dogs gave King a judgmental look that said, “Really?”

‘What? Reddit said it works,’ King thought.

“How are you going to profit from that? Are you donating your clothes?” he asked innocently.

King’s eyes widened, more so hurt than shocked. That was it! That was the last straw for King. He couldn’t take it anymore. There was no point in hitting on someone who wasn’t interested in you.

For days, all he had done was try to woo Ram. Ram made no attempt of his own and seemed more appalled than yearning. Their months of "flirting" must've led him to the conclusion that they should stay phi and nong. It was very inconsiderate to not let King know of his new choice.

“If you don’t like me, then just say so. Don’t lead a guy on!” and with that, King opened the door to his condo and slammed the door in his face.

“P’King? P’King?”

King crashed his back against his door and felt the poundings of Ram’s fists battling against him. No. He wasn’t going to get a chance to play with his feelings any longer. With great difficulty, he abandoned his door and walked to his room.


	7. Ram is Clueless

One week had passed since King’s blow up at Ram. The entire time, Ram was confused. They were enjoying each other’s presence, King mentioned something random, and out of nowhere was angrily accusing Ram of leading him on.

For those seven days, Ram contemplated what could’ve caused his outbreak. Did he want to be kissed before they parted ways? Maybe he didn’t grab his wrist enough. It was possible that King wanted more annoying affection like Bohn and Duen.

But Ram wasn’t like that. He didn’t see use in acting like King’s group of friends when it came to relationships. Romance was more intimate when it was private. He thought they were quite romantic on their own. Not many bros put flowers on each other’s heads and admired them. Not many bros share kisses in a tent after drunken confessions. They supported each other through their ups and downs. King was there for Ram during his family crisis, and Ram was his on-call nurse when his head was injured.

It had been 168 hours, and Ram still couldn’t figure out what he did wrong. He considered asking his friends for advice but didn’t want to trouble them. Besides, if he had to ask his friends for help, how strong was their relationship? They needed to learn how to figure things out on their own.

He shouldn’t be sitting on the pavement on the sidewalk. This was around the time that King would eagerly try to start a conversation with him or do something thoughtful like give him a gift or more homework notes. Ram’s heart would flutter at just the sight of him and remind him that this was the extraordinary person that understood him better than anyone else. This senior made him want to work on becoming more open and willing to let down his walls that were higher than Mount Everest. From the moment they caught eyes in the library, he knew that they were going to have a unique story. He just didn’t think it’d end so soon, so abruptly.

“Penny for your thoughts,”

Hearing a voice comment from above, Ram snapped out of his trance and glanced up to see Duen beaming down at him. His right hand clutched tightly onto a bag with an envelope sticking out at the top of it. If Bohn hadn’t been so vocal about it, Ram wouldn’t have known that was part of his anniversary gift to his beloved.

“Huh?”

“I’m just teasing you,” Duen started. He settled himself next to Ram on the sidewalk and gave him a knowing look. “Are you doing alright? I haven’t seen you with King recently.”

His heart sank at the mention of his name. King. The king that ruled his heart. He was also the ruler of miscommunication, presumptions, and declarations. King didn't even give him a chance to defend himself. Merciless. He was the king of mercilessness too. Ram was under the impression he'd be a believer in second chances. Somewhere, he hoped that was true.

“I’m fine,” Ram insisted.

It wasn’t anyone else’s business what they were going through. It wasn’t like Duen ever went to him for relationship advice. Then again, if Bohn did anything wrong, he would be waiting for another punch in the face! It was probably for the best that Duen didn’t come to him. Besides the silent, not-so-silent, feud between him and his boyfriend, Ram didn’t have much dating experience. It wouldn’t make sense for anyone to ask for his advice.

“Are you sure?” Duen asked with concern. Ram nodded weakly.

From the look Duen gave him, he knew something was up but decided not to press further.

“Okay. Well, I just wanted to invite you to Tee’s brother’s wedding. He said they want it to be a huge event,” Duen said.

Ram wasn’t sure he was up for a celebration of love. And Tee wasn’t a close friend of his anyway. Shouldn’t he have invited him personally if it was his brother’s wedding? The last wedding he had attended resulted in him leaving early and feeling as if he wasted time. He found them to be boring. If he was going to a friend’s wedding, he was sure to be happy for him or her, but when it was your third cousin whom you haven’t seen in ten years, it felt pretentious.

“I don’t think I can make it,” Ram lied.

“I haven’t even told you the date yet,” Duen chuckled. Ram looked away. “King will be there,” he added gently.

That definitely grabbed his attention.

Weddings were romantic. If there was to be a perfect setting to settle love, it was at a wedding. Weddings celebrated the commencement of love and promise. In sickness and in health, for better or for worse. They were in their worse now, but Ram could make it better. He just had to figure out what to do.

“When did you say it was?”

“It’s tomorrow at 3pm. Be there or be square,” Duen grinned.

“Okay,”


	8. Can you Hold This?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> These are the songs I imagine playing this chapter.
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sbNAm-XAres
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l5a2-iU2vO0
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4w9fTT0fcE

The ceremony had ended, and now couples were on the dance floor. King was seated at an empty table, longingly looking at the pairs intimately swaying to the beautiful music blasting from the speakers. The sight made Ram’s heart drop. He didn’t want King to be dejected by looking at other couples.

Ram had wanted, more than anything, to sweep King off his feet and boldly dance with him in front of everyone. He wanted to see King’s face light up the entire room and almost give him a heart attack with his sugary smile. Most of all, he wanted to make King happy.

And Ram would be doing that if he could. All afternoon, he tried to give himself the courage to approach the boy that, though he was surrounded by friends at every constant, looked extremely lonely. But how could he talk to him when he didn’t even know what he had done wrong? Sure, he could ask King, but that might result in him storming away once again. Ram didn’t want to spoil King’s memory of his friend’s brother’s special day. 

King wasn’t the only one in pain. Ram was hurting too. His best friend was off gallivanting in the gardens nearby with his boyfriend, gushing over what their future wedding could look like, and none of his other friends were invited. This entire evening had been celebrating togetherness, but he had no one to share it with. The one person he wanted to hold was giving him the cold shoulder. 

He wished that King wouldn’t be so obstinate and explain himself. Ram was never good at understanding others, tried as he might. Duen often told him he couldn’t read the room even if he spent all day learning its letters. That was saying a lot considering it was coming from one of the most gullible people he’d ever met. But he was right. It wasn’t that Ram was dense; it was that he never tried to figure others out before, so he wasn’t given the opportunity to learn. 

“You’re an idiot, by the way,” a snide comment from behind him said. Ram glared back around to see Bohn crossing his arms at him. He appeared more serious than usual. 

In a crowd of people, at near the edge of the dancefloor, Ram and Bohn stood there challenging each other with their body language. He might’ve been shorter, but Ram wasn’t scared of Bohn at all. If he really wanted to, he could easily take that guy down. Nothing about those fish eyes intimidated him. 

“All last week, you’ve been dodging his advances. I don’t know why you don’t like King anymore, but you’re missing out,” Bohn said sharply. Ram frowned and mimed Bohn, crossing his own arms defensively.

What had King been telling people? Ram was under the impression that what stayed between them was private, but evidently, King was letting his friends know of their squabble like a housewife spilling the tea on a Tuesday during a book club meeting. All Bohn was missing was a tiny sandwich with an obnoxiously judgemental voice.

“What makes you think I don’t like him anymore?” Ram asked. And what advances was Bohn referring to? This was a weird conversation. 

“Well, when you hit on someone, and they act like they don’t even know what you’re doing, it’s pretty obvious they aren’t into you,” Bohn said. The red from the flashing lights cascaded over his face, making him appear angrier than he probably was. For the first time, the tables were turned. Bohn was defending his friend’s honor. Ram would’ve been impressed if it hadn’t been against him.

“Not that it’s your concern, but we were spending a lot of time together until King accused me of-,” Ram stopped himself. 

King might’ve been involving his friends, but he didn’t want to. Speaking to people he wasn’t close to was already more trouble than it was worth. The added expense of defending himself when he didn’t even know what exactly he was defending himself for was growing tiresome.

“Of what? The truth? I can’t believe it took him five days to figure out you weren’t interested,” Bohn’s disgusted expression only perplexed the cold face more. 

And for once, in the time that he had known this jerk, his face broke. Ram’s face no longer held that unreadable stare. A more troubled expression broke as he feared what Bohn was saying; King genuinely thought that he had lost interest. 

“What are you talking about?” He did his best not to sound upset at the question, but to his dismay, he could hear the small crack in his voice.

“You! King has been using pick up lines on you for days, and all you did was ignore him. How do you think that makes him feel?” Bohn asked harshly. His boyfriend appeared from behind and held onto his waist. Duen whispered something in his ear, making him calm down.

“What pick up lines?” Ram asked.

Seriously, what pick up lines? As far as Ram was concerned, they had been their usual selves. Nothing had changed in the weeks leading up to their time apart. 

“You’re really this dense? The, “Are you a flower because I dig you?” one doesn’t ring a bell? You’re saying you don’t remember him asking if he can check you out?” 

Duen patted Bohn’s side and assuaged him. The tenseness in his body showed how much his friend’s broken heart was affecting him. Bohn really was an emotional guy. He should talk to a therapist about that.

“Those were pick up lines?” Ram asked stupidly. 

“Yes! What else would they be?” Bohn asked like it was the most obvious answer in the world.

Slowly, Ram was putting together the pieces of his scattered puzzle. It all made sense now. Ram had thought King’s sour face had been off recently, but he associated that to the overwhelming amount of schoolwork he had. But thinking back, he realized that King had been using adorable puns to get his attention. The flower one was rather clever when he thought back on it.

“I thought he was saying random stuff, like usual,” Ram admitted. 

Bohn lunged at him but was held back by Duen. Duen pushed him aside and gave Ram a sympathetic look.

“King really likes you. Since you’ve been avoiding his flirting tactics, he feels like you don’t like him anymore,” Duen explained calmly. Thank goodness for the calmness that was Duen. Bohn’s fire needed water like him.

“He’s not good with his emotions. He might talk a lot, but he only opens up at surface level. It takes a special person to have a deeper connection with him,” Bohn said. Ram understood. He needed to get King back.

“What should I do?” he surrendered on the idea of keeping them out of it. It was too late to back out of that, and he wasn’t doing himself any favors by not asking for advice.

“You should use a pick up line on him!” Bohn said. That actually wasn’t a bad idea. Who knew Bohn had that in him? That was probably from all the times he had to apologize to Duen. You pick up a few things.

“I don’t know any pick up lines,”

“How about, “Is your name homework because I’m not doing you, but I should be,’” Bohn suggested. They both gave him a disgusted look. And he was back.

“I have one,” Duen, the love doctor, said.

****  
Ram worked up the courage to finally talk to his crush after a week of absence. King was still sitting at the table, looking very dashing in his suit. He had never seen him so well dressed. He was sporting a royal red blazer with black trimming and black trousers to match. Charcoal locks framed his face and snipped just under his cheekbones. As handsome as he looked, his eyes were holding that blue gaze Ram hated to see.

Quietly, he approached him. He held out a balled fist. “Can you hold this for me?” he asked. 

In the background, music was thundering their bubble. It wasn’t vexatious though. Instead, it soothed the tension between them. His heart pounded to the beat of melody. 

Surprised, King glanced at him and then his hand. He opened his hand, inviting Ram to give him whatever it was he wanted him to hold. Ram placed his hand in his and locked their fingers together. A shy smile appeared on Ram’s face.

“I don’t get it. There isn’t anything in your hand,” King said in a small voice.

“I...want you to hold my hand,” Ram said embarrassed. 

King let out a little smile. Ram felt almost victorious until he saw the contemplative look on his senior’s face. King let go of his hand and turned away. Ram pulled his focus back to him by grabbing for his hand again.

“I’m sorry,” he said quickly. “I didn’t realize you were flirting with me...I’ve never been flirted with before, so I didn’t understand what you were doing,”

King bit his lip back and raised an eyebrow. “People flirt with you all the time. You just don’t notice,” 

Even though Ram was towering over the seated man, he felt smaller than him. Their positions should be switched. After all, Ram was the one that was lower than him.

“I’m sorry,” he said sincerely, hoping King could hear it over the loudness that encased them.

“It’s okay. It’s not your fault I wasn’t clear enough,” King glanced at their hands and watched Ram traced a few hearts against the top of his hand with his thumb while his ring rubbed the flinching appendage. Their shared warmth heated the hearth within Ram. This, he wanted more of this. 

It wasn’t the plant lover’s fault at all. Pick up lines were part of normal human interaction. The only fault he had was falling for such a dummy, if one could blame him for that.

“I do like you,” Ram said. 

There it was. King’s signature amorous smile timidly split his face, teeth and all. A sparkle was caught from the corners of Ram’s eyes. 

“Y-you do?” 

What else could Ram say or do to make him believe that he had without a doubt, one thousand percent, honestly, had fallen for King harder than a guy jumping off a building? Did he have to get on one knee? Considering where they were, that sounded fitting. Unfortunately, Ram was too shy to make such a bold move in front of so many people.

“Yes. I like you a lot,” he said. A trail of a sweet voice caressed the shells of his ears. It was such a touching song. “Will you dance with me as my boyfriend?” Ram asked. They had been flirting long enough. Ram knew he wanted to be with King. What was the point of waiting any longer?

“Are you asking me to be your boyfriend?” Though King held his smile, the trepidation was there. 

“I think,” Ram wasn’t sure he knew how the whole flirting thing worked still.

“You think or you know?” King settled their hands on his lap and gifted him an expectant look. Ram locked his eyes with those chocolate orbs.

“I know,” he affirmed.

“Then let’s get on the dance floor before we miss the best part!” King cheered. He shot up from his chair and pulled Ram amongst the collection of pairs.


	9. Hush Hush Hush Blush Blush Blush

It was decided by both parties that, to avoid confusion, there would no longer be pick up lines. Instead, they were to directly say what was on their minds. King didn’t like using them anyway. Google was useless. All it had to say was to be more communicative, but instead suggested more trouble than it was worth. Every couple was different, therefore, treating them all the same would not lead with the same results or outcomes.

Things had been better between them since their new agreement. Ram was able to understand King and respond appropriately to what he said. King’s personal favorite example was last week.

“Ai’Ning,” King had said to him when they had met up in front of his classroom one morning before class started. Just outside the doorway, they had been talking about which fertilizer worked best for the newest plant King had gifted Ram. 

“Hm?” Ram titled his head at the boy.

“Can you kiss my cheek before I go to class? It will bring me luck for my test,” King said smugly. He bubbled his right cheek and leaned towards his boyfriend’s face. 

Ram raised an eyebrow at him and waited to see if he was serious or not. Apparently, he was serious. With a bashful smile, he happily planted a chaste kiss to his soft face. A quick spark zapped their skin. Thank you kinetic energy.

“Did you feel that? We really do make magic,” King smiled and waved Ram off to his doom. Tests these days were becoming increasingly difficult.

King and Bohn waited patiently, with their friends, at the canteen for their boyfriends to arrive, promising that they’d eat lunch with them. Bohn had a special privilege over Ram now, guilt privilege. Whenever Ram tried to say something bad, Bohn would remind him what he did to King. It wasn’t nice, and King kept telling him to stop, but he wouldn’t. He said it was his only way to defend himself.

“Duen!” Bohn leapt for joy at the sight of his beloved and latched onto his waist like a grubby child. Duen tried to pry him off, but it was no use. 

“P’Bohn, let go,” Duen complained. Bohn refused with a shake of his head and nuzzled his face deeper into his stomach, leaning over the table and clung to his standing boyfriend like a sloth to a branch.

“Ai’Ning, you look really handsome today,” King complimented as he stopped in front of him.

Ram suddenly looked far different from his white complexion. His entire head became a tomato. Everyone stared in shock. 

“Woah! He’s blushing,” Boss gasped.

Ram’s hand reached for his face and blushed harder; somehow, that was possible. King grinned. He had finally accomplished his goal.

“Yes! You all owe me 300 baht!” King cheered with a raised fist in the air. Victory at last!

“Technically, you owe us 300 baht. Your week expired two weeks ago,” Tee pointed out. 

As for the bet, no one made King pay. They felt too bad for him after seeing him disheartened for the week Ram and him spent apart. They didn’t want to make him lose more pride than he already had. It was a week of rejection and an additional week apart. Two weeks of too much drama.

“Baht for what?” Ram muttered. The table hushed. No one told him about the bet, did they? It was King’s funeral. Twelve eyes examined the engineer. There was no way they were telling him. Well, Boss wanted to but was having his thigh pinched by Mek from under the table.

King gulped and nervously smiled at the crowd. As much as he wanted to lie, he knew that it would make the situation worse.

“Haha, I, okay it’s a funny story really. I mean, you should’ve been there. You would’ve been laughing your head off if you were there,” King rambled. Ram’s expression changed seriously. Boss couldn’t take it anymore!

“He made a bet he could make you blush, and we didn’t think he could!” Boss said. He yelped at Bohn’s blow to the back of his head.

Ram held back a smirk. “How did that work for you?” 

“The blushing part? Unsuccessfully until now. Wait, why are you blushing? I’ve called you many things before,” King acknowledged.

“Because…” Ram looked at the ground and twitched his fingers by his sides. 

“I think it’s because we’re around,” Duen said.

King wanted to slap Ram in that moment. He was being told that all he had to do was compliment him in front of his friends, and he could’ve won 1,200 baht?! Why didn’t he think of this sooner? Teasing in front of others was the very basics of making someone blush, whether you were dating them or not. 

Boss let out a hardy laugh. “All of that just to find out he gets people shy! Wow! Your luck sucks King,” Boss cackled. Mek slapped the back of his head and covered his mouth. Someone was being a naughty wife. Boss pouted and licked Mek’s hand, resulting in him immediately pulling away with a disgusted look.

“You know, husband, they say happy wife, happy life. Don’t think you can tame this wild maiden!” Boss declared. Mek covered his mouth again, this time not removing himself when Boss licked his palm again.

“You’ve licked in worse places,” Mek said bluntly.

“And that’s what we call too much information. Thank goodness you have more shame than them Ram. Take your embarrassment as a good thing,” Tee encouraged him. Ram nodded his head and clutched onto King’s wrist.

“What? I thought we were eating with my friends today,” King complained. Ram shook his head and insisted he followed him. King complied and was taken to the place he had laid that not winning flower pick up line on him.

In front of them was a burberry blanket framed with scattered flowers, spread on the ground and a basket with mysterious contents. A couple white plates with gold lining were stacked against the box. 

“What’s this?” King smiled sweetly and settled himself on the blanket. Ram disappeared from one of the trees and came back with a shovel and a flower in his hair. He descended next to King comfortably.

“I am a flower,” he said lowly while handing him the shovel. King giggled at his goofiness.

“I thought we weren’t doing pick up lines anymore,” King said. Ram gave him an expectant look. With glee, he took the shovel and ‘dug’ the flower out of Ram’s hair. He carefully plucked the flower from the tool and placed it between them.

“You don’t have to keep apologizing. You’ve been doing this all week,” he said.

“I know. But then I wouldn’t have an excuse to have my clothes one hundred percent off at your place,” Ram smirked.

“Ai’Ning!” King blushed and shoved him playfully with his shoulder. 

Ram could be very sweet when he wanted to be. King wished he would do this just because and not just to apologize. In a way, he had in the past. Even something as simple as giving him the orange juice he craved was a nice gesture. 

Ram pulled out food from the basket and readied it on their plates.

“I like you,” King said randomly. Ram paused and let a smile break out on his face.

“I like you too,”

**Author's Note:**

> I got this idea after reading funny flirting attempts online. I hope you enjoy!


End file.
